Bizarre diplomacy

Something about the very notion of Junichiro Koizumi at Graceland makes me giggle. (WP)

Chastity is not the name of an antiviral drug.

The hard core of the abstinence-only movement just keeps getting more and more dangerous to women's health. They've gone beyond opposing important steps to prevent the spread of HIV and other STDs both in the US and abroad, and are now opposing steps to prevent cervical cancer in young women. (NYT) Because to give young women a new cervical cancer vaccine would be to concede that, at some point in their lives, they might possibly have sex.

The climate's changing. The cause matters.

At first glace, it seems the Bush administration has taken a huge step forward in acknowledging the problem of climate change and the need to find solutions. Time was, this administration was systematically editing the merest mention of climate change out of agency documents and stifling employee discussion of the topic. But last week, the president called climate change a "serious problem." (AFP) What a change of heart!

Errr...not quite. Here's the rest of the quote:

"There's a debate over whether it's manmade or naturally caused...we ought to get beyond that debate and start implementing the technologies necessary to enable us to achieve a couple of big objectives..."

Of course, there is less debate over whether climate change is caused by human activity than Mr. Bush suggests. But putting that aside, doesn't the question of whether the phenomenon is "manmade or naturally caused" have direct bearing upon what solutions we should adopt? Doesn't that tell us a little something as to how much control we have over the future course of the problem, and what the most effective solutions might be?

Everything's OK

Earth's Climate Warming Abruptly, Scientist Says
Tropical-Zone Glaciers May Be at Risk of Melting (WP)

Planning to Cool Earth
Futuristic ways to fight global warming, including sunshades in space, are being considered. (NYT)

Pssh. If Technology can make a Pop Tart taste like a strawberry, I'm pretty sure Technology can halt global warming.

Buongiorno

I'm back from the Italian whirlwind voyage--pics and stories coming soon. In the meantime, I offer the following words of wisdom from a Venice graffito:

Hiatus

Yo, Im in Venice, where as you may notice its hard to find the apostrophe key, and fifteen minutes on the internet costs ten bucks (while a bottle of excellent wine costs three, go figure). So no blogging for a week or so!

Apocalyptic, much?

Where "sadness" and "existential dread" intersect, you find...polar bears eating each other because of starvation triggered by habitat loss from global warming. (AP via Seattle P-I)

It's just awful.

DC considers switch to metered cabs

Taxi industry rep: "The zone system is a good system, and I'll tell you why: People in Washington, D.C., they know what the fare is because the zones don't change -- I don't care how much traffic you're in." (WP)

To this I can only say, HAHAHAHAHA. Everyone knows the quoted fare for virtually identical trips in the District varies on the weather, the phase of the moon, and what your cabbie may or may not have eaten for lunch that day. And to successfully challenge a cabbie's interpretation of the fare, one must have a nearly encyclopedic knowledge of the DC zone map:


I say, make sure cabbies and riders are getting a fare shake: switch to a metered system that guarantees a fair price for riders and a living wage for drivers.

It ain't SLANDER if it's true

Investigating possible plagiarism by Ann Coulter is like investigating possible adultery by Gene McCarthy--sort of appealing, but also sort of beside the point. The Rude Pundit still gets props for comments on instances of plagiarism in her latest book.

But if you really feel like wallowing in your hatred for Ann, I highly recommend AntiCoulter.

Or maybe her official website, where she has posted DOZENS of photos of herself decked out in a variety of outfits and poses. Vanity is unattractive in anyone, but also sort of funny in a woman cursed with Ann's sticklike frame, visible adam's apple, and prematurely aging skin. **retracting claws**

The New York Times editorial writers:

Sometimes they say what the rest of us are only thinking.

What Passes for Good News

Any day in which the House or Senate refrains from doing something destructive is about as good as it gets in Washington lately. [on the Senate's rejection of estate tax repeal yesterday]

Without DeLay

I am sure conservatives across America are delighted that the uber-corrupt Tom DeLay is holding himself up as their poster boy, as he did in his farewell speech today. It makes me sad for the many conservatives I know who hold themselves to high standards of moral and intellectual integrity.

However, after the last few years of capitulation and fence sitting by some in Washington, I find myself almost having to agree with DeLay's ruminations on the value of partisanship in the speech today.

"It is not the principled partisan, however obnoxious he may seem to his opponents, who degrades our public debate, but the preening, self-styled statesman who elevates compromise to a first principle ."

I think the loyal opposition would do well to adopt this attitude of DeLay's. But keep everything on the up-and-up, 'kay?

Teeny tiny pouty lips

I am a bit surprised that the sight of little Shiloh Jolie-Pitt did not burn my eyes out.
(Hello!)

I'm outta here.

TRACY, CA--In a victory sure to help drive the forces of good and righteousness to an early vacation, or perhaps an early grave, House Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo trounced his upstanding, conservationist Republican primary opponent yesterday in the battle for California's 11th district. (AP via SF Chronicle)

This male grooming thing is getting out of hand

"Experience the Bodygroom"

There is really only one kiwi that might look better with a good shave:

Bug blog

Just in time for the summer june bug/luna moth/occasionally cicada season:

What's That Bug?

If you have ever seen a cool bug and wondered, "what's that bug?," or if you simply like to look at pictures of interesting bugs, this is definitely the blog for you. People send in photos of bugs they can't identify, and the bloggers post the photos and tell us about the bugs.

The page on saturnid moths is particularly fascinating.